Redress payments, the Arizona temple case and Pearl Harbor’s 50th

Vol. 113, No. 11, October 11, 1991. 8 pages. View this issue

The second round of redress payments led the news. The Office of Redress Administration mailed them on Oct. 1 to 22,800 eligible Japanese Americans held during the World War II incarceration (often called internment), with Congress setting aside $500 million for fiscal 1992. Rep. Norman Mineta wrote to the media ahead of the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, and Los Angeles groups began planning a Day of Remembrance for Executive Order 9066 that includes a Manzanar pilgrimage. The front page also covered the Arizona Buddhist temple murder case and JACL’s opposition to Clarence Thomas.

Columns came from Bill Hosokawa, Bill Marutani and Michi Nishiura Weglyn, who argued that more people deserve redress. Chapter news followed: the Salinas Valley JACL’s drive for the JACL Legacy Fund, the Sendai Festival in Riverside, the Daruma Festival in West Valley, and a Gardena talk on Peru’s President Fujimori.

What’s in this issue

National

• Suspect Will Stand Trial for Arizona Temple Crime, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Dante Parker, 20, accused of murdering nine people at a Buddhist temple west of Phoenix, has been ruled fit to stand trial after Judge Ronald Reinstein found his alibi claims insufficient. Parker faces multiple counts including murder and robbery, with a trial date set for December.
• Mineta Writes Media About Pearl Harbor Anniversary, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Rep. Norman Mineta contacted major media outlets ahead of the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, recalling the shock and fear of Dec. 7, 1941, and how Japanese Americans were removed from their homes despite their loyalty. He emphasized it took 47 years before the internment’s constitutional violations were addressed through the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.
• Media Swarming Over Pearl Harbor Anniversary, by P.C. Staff, page 1. A leadership conference is being planned in Philadelphia as media attention builds ahead of the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Strategies are being planned in Honolulu regarding the anniversary coverage.
• Mineta Urges Paid Leave for Parents to Attend PTA, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Rep. Norman Mineta announced a resolution at the National Press Club calling on employers to provide paid leave so parents can meet with teachers about their children’s education. The resolution aims to improve American children’s education by fostering better parent-teacher communication.
• News Briefs: Columbus Anniversary, Census Data, and More, by P.C. Staff, page 3. A roundup of short news items covers topics including a replica ship’s voyage commemorating Columbus’s journey, debate over whether Indians from India should be classified as Asian for minority business purposes, and 1990 Census figures showing more Tongans live in Utah than Hawaii. Additional items address Japanese education comparisons, foreign university branch campuses in Japan, fundraising for the Japanese American National Museum, Whittier College’s diversity rankings, and a TV blooper involving an ethnic slur on Murphy Brown.

JACL

• JACL Opposes Nomination of Clarence Thomas, by P.C. Staff, page 1. JACL officially took a position on Sept. 30 opposing the nomination of Clarence Thomas. The brief item notes the timing came before the final Senate balloting on Oct. 8.
• PSWDC Quarterly Meeting Addresses Hate Crimes, Legacy Fund, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The fourth PSWDC quarterly meeting will be hosted by Las Vegas JACL over Nov. 1-3, coinciding with district election time; a prior meeting at UC Riverside addressed hate crimes monitoring and the JACL Legacy Fund’s interest distribution plan. Dennis Hayashi of Asian Law Caucus was announced as the new national director starting Nov. 1, replacing Bill Yoshino.

Incarceration & Redress

• Redress, Round 2: Payments Go Out in First Week of October, by P.C. Staff, page 1. The Office of Redress Administration mailed the second round of redress payments on Oct. 1 to 22,800 eligible Japanese Americans interned during WWII, with Congress allocating $500 million for fiscal 1992. Officials including John Dunne and Robert Bratt discussed verification issues and a new format for the Letter of Apology to enhance authenticity.
• Los Angeles Plans Day of Remembrance, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Eight major Los Angeles area organizations are raising funds to assure a successful 50th anniversary Day of Remembrance commemorating Executive Order 9066, which led to the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans during WWII. Planned events include an interfaith commemoration in February, a civil rights conference in March, a Manzanar pilgrimage, and the grand opening of the Japanese American National Museum.

Community

• Events Offer Spotlight for Asian Americans, by P.C. Staff, page 1. More than 1,500 minority businesses gathered in New York for an event focused on international marketing opportunities for minority businesses. The gathering anticipated significant participation and networking opportunities.
• Salinas Valley JACL Launches Ambitious Legacy Fund Drive, by P.C. Staff, page 5. An ambitious Salinas Valley JACL drive to raise $103,700 as its share of the $10 million JACL Legacy Fund launched in the first week, organized by a steering committee under past chapter president Shiro Higashi. John Enomoto of San Mateo, the legacy fund district coordinator, met with the committee at an orientation meeting also attended by Monterey Peninsula JACL representatives.
• Riverside’s Sendai Festival Marks 24th Year, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Sendai Festival, sponsored by the local JACL since 1968 and named for the Sendai-Riverside Sister City ties, held its 24th annual event on Oct. 5. This year’s sponsors included the International Relations Council, UCR International Services Center, and other community organizations, continuing a friendship tradition started by the late Jessie Paulson.
• West Valley’s Daruma Festival Marks 14th Year, by P.C. Staff, page 5. West Valley JACL president Dave Muraoka reported the 14th annual Daruma Festival went better than recent years despite an area-wide 8-10% revenue decline reported by other arts and wine festivals. The festival emphasized interaction between JACLers and the ‘Next Generation,’ with plans to expand next year under 1991 Festival chair Garrett Uchiyama.
• East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center Winds Down 1991 Calendar, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center is finishing its 1991 social calendar with two dances, free flu shots for seniors over 55, and a general meeting on Nov. 6 to elect 1992 officers. All events are scheduled at the JCC on West Puente Avenue in West Covina.
• JASSI Notes: Indonesia Trip Slides and Cornell-Bound Intern, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Meg Maruki of Japanese American Social Services, Inc. showed slides of her Indonesia trip at a senior citizens luncheon at the New York Athletic Club. Amane Kariya, 18, was awarded a Bristol-Myers-funded summer internship to do outreach work at JASSI before entering Cornell in the fall.
• Fresno Churches Celebrate Anniversary, by P.C. Staff, page 5. The Christ United Methodist Church and Japanese Congregational Church, now merged as the Fresno United Japanese Christian Church, celebrated their anniversary with a party attended by some 300 people. The event featured participation from Rev. Norio Kobanda and the Fresno Buddhist Church led by Rinban Keizo Norimoto.
• Gardena Valley Event Discusses ‘President Fujimori After One Year’, by P.C. Staff, page 5. About 80 attendees gathered in Gardena to hear P.C. senior editor Harry K. Honda, Luis Yamakawa, and Jonathan Sanchez discuss Peruvian President Fujimori’s first year in office, including videotapes of his campaign and National Press Club appearance. Speakers touched on anti-Japanese sentiment in Peru during the 1920s-30s and improvements in Peru’s customs service under Fujimori’s administration.
• Utah JACLer Oscar Miaaka Honored for Community Service, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Oscar Miaaka, in the nursery business since 1955, was recognized by the Mt. Olympus JACL with the 1991 Community Service award for his public goodwill efforts over the years. He helped develop testing standards for the Utah Certified Nurserymen’s Association and served as a judge for civic beautification contests.

Commentary

• On Being ‘Citizens of the World’, by Bill Hosokawa, page 4. Hosokawa reviews Bruce Feiler’s book ‘Learning to Bow,’ about an American teacher’s experience in a Japanese junior high school, highlighting cultural differences in communication styles between Japan and the West. The column explores how Japanese education fails to teach students to be ‘citizens of the world,’ despite excelling at teaching them to be citizens of Japan.
• J.F.K. Kōkū, by Bill Marutani, page 4. Marutani recounts an amusing hour spent people-watching at JFK airport, observing the different greeting customs used by Japanese arrivals and their hosts, from bows to handshakes to embraces. He muses about airline choices and cultural nuances in greeting styles before boarding his own JAL flight.
• More Persons Entitled to Redress, She Says, by Michi Nishiura Weglyn, page 4. Weglyn writes in response to a Denver Post article confirming that the State Department solicited deportations of Japanese Latin Americans to use as bargaining chips for prisoner exchanges during WWII. She argues that these victims, as well as surviving members of the Hawaii National Guard who were forcibly removed in 1942, should be eligible for redress.
• Wants to Get Data from U.S. Government, page 4. A retired U.S. Army CIC veteran writes expressing concern about the JACL’s approach to obtaining data from the federal government regarding surveillance of Japanese Americans. The letter criticizes what the writer perceives as secretive tactics by JACL since its 1988 convention.

Obituaries

• Robert S. Ito, 74, Businessman and Wartime Resettler, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Robert S. Ito, a San Francisco-born businessman and retired president of a Japanese manufacturing firm, died Sept. 21 of cancer in Rockville, Md. He resettled from the WWII Topaz camp to work for the Foreign Broadcast Intelligence Service in Washington and later represented American firms in Japan through the 1960s-80s.
• Kenji Reedley Community Leader Remembered, by P.C. Staff, page 6. A longtime Reedley, Calif. resident and Kiwanis member with decades of service and honors including Kiwanian of the Year, is survived by his wife Michiko, daughter Kiyoko Takahashi, and three grandchildren. He was also a JACL 1000 Club Life member and held a JACL ruby pin.
• Ruth Ayako Dickson, Community Member, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Ruth Ayako Dickson passed away in Vallejo on Sept. 30, 1991. She is survived by brothers including Kenichi and James.

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